Following a detailed case report, we will present an a posteriori analysis of what options were available to the Air Traffic Services Provider and Airlines in terms of helping traffic bound to or originating from San Francisco and whether some international flights truly had to be redirected as far as Calgary, Canada.
We will conclude by discussing a possible systematic research program aimed at developing computer-aided tools that may be used to mitigate the impact of large adverse events on the air transportation system.
Eric Feron is Dutton-Ducoffe Professor of Aerospace Software Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA, and Consulting Professor at Ecole Nationale de l'Aviation Civile. Prior to that, Eric Feron was a professor at MIT's department of Aeronautics and Astronautics for 12 years. He holds his BS, MS and PhD degrees from Ecole Polytechnique, France, Ecole Normale Superieure, France and Stanford University, USA. Eric Feron's interests are to use fundamental concepts of control systems, optimization and computer science to address important problems in aerospace and transportation engineering, including: Air transportation, aerobatic control of unmanned aerial vehicles, aerospace software system certification, and human-machine interaction. Eric Feron has published two books and several research papers; He has been recognized for his work on autonomous aerobatic helicopter flight, human drowsiness and its impact on driver safety, and airport departure metering for "green" operations.